The Day of Shitala Devi

One week after Holi, a special holiday that is perhaps not so known around the world is
observed in our ashram. It is the day dedicated to Shitala Mata or Sitala Devi, one aspect of
Divine Mother worshipped as the goddess of smallpox.
The holiday is known under the name of Shitala Asthami as it falls on the eighth day of the
Hindu month Chaitra which is usually in March or April.

Story of Shitala Devi

Shitala Mata is mentioned in many scriptures, especially in Skanda Purana as the goddess
of smallpox. She is both the cause of the disease and the cure. When Shitala Devi first arose
from a sacrificial fire, god Brahma told her that humans would always worship her, as long as
she carried the seeds of a particular lentil called urad dal. Along with her companion,
Jvarasura, the demon of fever created from the sweat of god Shiva, she travelled to visit
other gods. Somewhere along the way, her lentils turned into smallpox germs, and anyone
whom they visited came down with a fever and smallpox. The gods asked Shitala Mata for
mercy, and requested her to take her load of germs and go to the earth. She agreed and
together with Jvarasura went down to the earth. Their first stop was at the court of King Birat,
who was a devotee of lord Shiva. King Birat agreed to worship Shitala and give her place in
his kingdom but would not give her supremacy over Shiva, so she threatened to infect his
people. He was not swayed, and Shitala Devi released 75 different kinds of pox on his
people. The disease spread far and wide, and there were many deaths. Finally, King Birat
relented, and Shitala Mata healed him and his people.

Symbols
Shitala Devi rides on a donkey, and she has four arms. In her hands she carries a silver
broom, a fan, a small bowl, and a pot of water. She uses these items to rid a house of
diseaseshe sweeps up the germs with her broom, uses the fan to collect them, and dumps
them into the bowl. She then sprinkles water from the pot (which is water from the river
Ganges) to purify the house. Shitalas name means the cooling one. With the change of
seasons and coming of the hot period, it is essential to emphasize the importance of hygiene
for human health and the worship of Shitala Mata provides the motivation to keep the
surroundings clean and hygienic.

Basoda food cooked the day before

Most foreign students and visitors at Om Ashram get to know of Shitala Asthami festival
through the special food prepared on this occasion. The local customs say that in order to
keep Shitala Mata cool on this day the fire should not be burned and the food should not be
cooked. That means one day before the holiday all kitchens in the villages are very busy as
all food is being prepared in advance. Our cook, Janaki Bai, explains that ladies leave the
food to cool down during the night. In the morning, the food is first offered to Shitala Devi in a
ceremony. Ladies of the house choose a special stone which symbolises Shitala Mata. It is
installed on a red cloth, then worshipped with light, incense, flowers, kum kum, water,
yoghurt, wheat, henna etc. Ingredients vary according to their availability and bhaktas
feelings. Specially prepared food is offered to the goddess and then consumed throughout
the day as prashad of Shitala Devi.

Such food is called Basoda coming from the word basi which means from the previous
night. The menu for the non-cooking day consists of dishes that do not get spoiled for a
longer time on temperatures of Rajasthani spring which are usually above 35C:

khadi (in our ashrams also called Mahaprabhuji's soup) a sour yellow soup made
from gram flour, buttermilk or yoghurt and spices

panchkuta Rajasthani speciality made of sun-dried vegetables that grow on trees

khichiya crispy chips made from rice flour and spices

puri deep fried bread in many variations: neutral, sweet, with chilli etc.

many kinds of crunchy chips made in different colours and shapes.

Unfortunately, photos provide only partial information about the event as they cannot convey
the atmosphere, tastes, textures and smells. For a real experience one needs to visit the
ashram. Welcome!